Auction Update Review

Five auctions were archived for the week ending November 6. Three were from Europe, two America. Reiss and Sohn held two auctions, one on Brazilian books and maps, the other the world up to 1600. Together they brought in over $1.7 million in U.S. dollars. The other European auction was of books and maps from Bruun Rasmussen.

In America, Bloomsbury held the Manhattan Graphics Benefit, while Bonham's offered an auction of prints. Prints have remained strong, and this auction did not disappoint, taking in over $1 million in sales.

While this sampling was small, the results were certainly respectable. All auctions achieved a sell-through rate of over 75%, with the average over 85%. Four of the five auctions achieved total sales greater than the sum of their high estimates. Only the Manhattan Graphics auction came out at the low end. The highest price went for a 1477 Ptolemaic map which sold for $358,000, almost ten times its estimate.

Bruce McKinney AE

11.08.09

<b>19th Century Shop’s Catalog 170 Great Books and Photos. Please inquire for a copy.</b>